Yang et al. discover conservation of genomic imprinting between closely related Triticum and Aegilops species. https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00837 By Guanghui Yang and Mingming Xin Background: Genomic imprinting causes genes to be differentially expressed depending on their parent-of-origin, which mainly occurs in the endosperm of plants. Researchers have identified hundreds of imprinted genes in plants by using RNA-seq […]
Zheng et al. discover proteins that mediate interactions between gibberellins and the circadian clock https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00830 By Han Zheng and Yong Ding Background: Hypocotyl elongation helps the shoot emerge from the soil surface. The gibberellin (GA) signaling protein RGA inhibits hypocotyl elongation, whereas activity of the circadian clock protein CCA1 promotes hypocotyl development. Multiple signaling pathways […]
Wang et al. investigate how two proteins work oppositely to regulate wax contents and drought stress response in rice https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00823 By Zhenyu Wang and Qingyun Bu Background: Rice is a staple food for world populations and its production is threatened by drought stress. Cuticular wax is the outmost layer of the plant and provides an […]
Yang et al. reveal a role for brassinosteroids in spikelet and floral meristem fate in Setaria viridis. The Plant Cell (2017) https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00816 By Jiani Yang and Andrea L. Eveland Background: Grass inflorescences show extensive morphological diversity between species, due to variation in the activity and fate of lateral meristems. Lateral meristems can undergo few to […]
Li et al. investigate a transcription factor network that transmits environmental signals to regulate secondary metabolism in plants. The Plant Cell https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00805. By Baohua Li and Daniel Kliebenstein Background: Plants produce specialized secondary metabolites to survive biotic and abiotic stress. Secondary metabolite accumulation in plants is strongly influenced by transcription factors (TFs), which play key […]
Maekawa et al. find a ribosome production monitoring system in Arabidopsis thaliana Plant Cell (2017) https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00778 By Shugo Maekawa, Tetsuya Ishida, Shuichi Yanagisawa Background: Protein is produced by ribosomes consisting of a number of proteins and several RNAs (ribosomal RNA, rRNA) as a scaffold. Ribosome synthesis, one of the most energy-consuming processes in the cell, […]
van Gelderen and Kang et al. investigate the root response to Far-Red light detection in the shoot. The Plant Cell (2017). https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00771 By Kasper van Gelderen and Ronald Pierik Background: Sunlight is the energy source for plants, however, when plants grow closely together they may get shaded by other plants. Therefore, plants have evolved mechanisms […]
Zhang et al. investigate histone deacetylase in the ethylene response. Plant Cell (2017). https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00671 By Fan Zhang Background: Ethylene is the only gaseous hormone in plants, and is a key hormone controlling plant growth and resistance to stress. Epigenetic mechanisms are an important means of gene regulation, including histone acetylation and deacetylation, controlled by histone […]
Yang et al. reveal a conserved H3K4me3 recognition mechanism shared by both plant and animal KDM5 histone demethylases. The Plant Cell (2017). https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.17.00666 By Z. Yang, Q. Qiu, X. Cao and J. Du Background: Histone methylation is a conserved gene regulation mechanism in plants and animals. The gene activation mark histone 3 lysine 4 trimethylation […]